Arsenal have the perfect chance to flip their season against Man City
Tomorrow, Arsenal come up against Women's Super League leaders, Man City. Despite being early in the season, this feels like a make-or-break tie for Arsenal. If they win, they get their mojo back, but if they lose (or even draw), they fall even further away from Man City, which would be a gap frankly too large even at this stage of the season.
The problem for Arsenal this season hasn't been chance creation. If you go by the stats blindly, you would think they were one of the most attacking teams in the league. And they are, in some sense, but they haven't been productive when the opportunity to score has opened up.
Arsenal face Man City at the wrong time, but that's exactly why it's the right time
The fixtures won't get any easier for Arsenal, so they cannot rely on beating weaker opposition. Heck, they've already wasted enough time in the season. If they want to send a message to the WSL, Sunday is the time to do it. Beat the league leaders (and champions); throw a spanner in the works.
Man City are pacing towards breaking Chelsea's WSL record of 22 unbeaten games at home, and it doesn't feel like they'll stop at Arsenal, who have frankly been underwhelming this season.
But that's exactly why Arsenal need to flip that narrative on its head. Arsenal aren't, and have never been, an easy three points. This is the biggest team in the WSL, and they need to act like it before it reaches the point of no return.
The signs were at least more encouraging for Arsenal in midweek. They were 2-0 up against Paris FC in the Champions League, and deserved to be. If it were not for Leah Williamson's freak handball, of which she is not to blame, they would have won the match and the narrative would have been completely different.
That said, the tale of Arsenal's season so far is coming painstakingly close. They are always almost there, but they can't seem to jump the final hurdle.
If there's ever a time for it to change, it's against Man City. It feels like the whole world is rooting against Man City right now - the club, obviously. We are yet to see what the implications of their charges mean for the women's team, but nobody can deny there will be a concentration lapse at the very least.
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